Description
It has been called the "spoon-billed mastodon" since its lower jaw was elongated and shaped like a shoe-horn or spoon. The flaring of the tip of the lower jaw was similar to that of the " shovel-tuskers" ('' Platybelodon'' and '' Amebelodon''); however, ''Gnathabelodon'' species are distinct in having no lower tusks whilst the "shovel tuskers" have broad, flattened lower tusks. The presence of a long lower jaw but no lower tusks is highly unusual among proboscideans, and only shared with '' Eubelodon'' and '' Choerolophodon.'' The upper tusks are large and curve outwards and upwards. With respect to dentition and overall body form, it was similar to species of '' Gomphotherium'', but Mothe et al. (2016) recover ''Gnathabelodon'' as closer to brevirostrine gomphotheriids than to ''Gomphotherium''.Mothé, Dimila; Ferretti, Marco P.; Avilla, Leonardo S. (12 January 2016). "The Dance of Tusks: Rediscovery of Lower Incisors in the Pan-American Proboscidean Cuvieronius hyodon Revises Incisor Evolution in Elephantimorpha". PLOS ONE. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0147009. Retrieved 4 May 2017.Taxonomy
While some studies have assigned the genus to Gomphotheriidae, other have suggested that it may have closer affinities with Choerolophodontidae.CX LI, J CHEN, SQ WANG Reassessment of ''Trilophodon connexus'' Hopwood, 1935 and attributing it to the Choerolophodontidae Vertebrata PalAsiatica, 2024References
Sources
* ''A Pictorial Guide to Fossils'' by Gerard Ramon Case * ''Classification of Mammals'' by Malcolm C. McKenna and Susan K. Bell {{Taxonbar, from=Q5574121 Miocene proboscideans Gomphotheres Miocene mammals of North America Prehistoric mammals of North America Prehistoric placental genera